


the mask over my heart

by lukanette



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien's oblivious to his own feelings, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Hot Mess Adrien Agreste, I'll add more as I go, M/M, Marigami, Mutual Pining, lukadrien
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-25
Updated: 2019-10-25
Packaged: 2020-12-28 10:29:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21135239
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lukanette/pseuds/lukanette
Summary: Nino and Alya have seen that Adrien, for the past three years, has been struggling with love. They're determined to fix that. When Adrien desperately needs a date to prove to them that he is capable of romancing someone, he asks his friend Luka to accompany him on a date. As he slowly falls in love with Luka, he decides to visit him as Chat Noir to figure out how he feels about Adrien.





	the mask over my heart

**Author's Note:**

> This one's for my fellow Lukadrien shippers who need to be fed. If it's bad, then Lila wrote this. c:

Adrien always felt like he had things under control, most of the time. He knew what he was doing. He quickly picked up fencing, Chinese, and all of his school subjects. Unfortunately for him, though, romance always fell flat. The one thing he thought he had down, he never seemed to get it right. All of his crushes never liked him back, and if they did, it just didn't work out.

Ladybug never loved him back, Kagami turned out to be a lesbian (whom he supported very much), Nathaniel started dating Marc right before Adrien decided to start talking to him more, and he found out about Marinette's crush on him too late. She had already moved on by the time he realized what he missed out on.

So, he was really shit out of luck when it came to his love life.

His best friends, Nino and Alya, were determined to fix that for him. They had witnessed every breakdown, every late-night crying phone call, every 'I found someone new' that circled back to a teary-eyed Adrien, all of it. All they wanted was for him to be happy with someone for once. Was their plan foolproof? No, but it was something, and if they really had to take matters into their own mischievous hands, they were going to do just that.

A soft _ring_ from under the blonde's bedsheets had him up in seconds, the light from the screen burning his eyes as he looked down at Nino's contact picture. With a puzzled look on his face, he pressed the answer button.

"Nino? ...You do realize it's midnight, right?" he muttered, still half asleep.

"You, me, Alya, and a date of your choice, tomorrow at 7. I promised Alya I'd do a double date with her and a couple of friends, and I figured you'd be able to get someone and join us with no issues. Can you do that?"

Adrien chuckled sourly, and retorted, "You're asking me, the guy who has failed with every single person he's liked for the past three years? It's not like I want to grab a random fan off of the street and ask them to join me, that'll just be awkward for both you guys and myself. Call Marinette, I'm sure she has a bunch of suitors at the moment."

"C'mon dude, you're not still upset about the whole Marinette thing, are you? She waited for you for like... the entirety of those three years. And hey, I can help you find someone if you really can't do it yourself. I just figured since you're a model and a _natural_ at romancing people and all, you wouldn't need help from me," Nino teased, hoping to catch Adrien off guard. He knew how stubborn Adrien could be, and if he pushed just the right amount, he could get Adrien fired up.

It seemed to work, as Adrien's tone shifted drastically.

"Well, I don't need your help, actually," he retorted quickly. "I can find someone all on my own, and I _will_ be joining you both tomorrow. Where are we going?" Adrien asked, smugness emanating off of his words.

"Le Grand Paris, make sure you're there at 7. I know you have a tendency to be late as fuck," Nino snickered. He continued, not giving Adrien the chance to defend himself. "See you there, dude. Good luck."

"I don't need luck," he stated proudly, but Nino had already hung up. He tossed his phone back down onto the bed, and trudged his way to the bathroom. After a few seconds of staring at himself in the mirror, he called out for his closest friend.

"Ugh, Plagg! What am I gonna do? I can't pick up people for shit, and you know that!"

"I don't know why you're yelling at _ME_ about that, you're the one who decided to be all cocky and say that it would be a piece of camembert," the kwami said while readying himself for the large bite of cheese he was about to take. As he chewed, he added a muffled, "You've really gotta stop faking confidence when you're under pressure. You've got a bad habit of that. You just make things worse for yourself."

"I know that," he sighed. He made his way back to his bed, grumpily tugging his comforter over his head as he settled in. One thing was for sure, he wasn't going to get much sleep. He had way too much on his mind.

. . .

The next morning, Adrien was up in an instant. Rushing to the bathroom to get himself decent and presentable, he tripped over his own feet a couple times. After a quick shower, a good teeth brushing session, and a speedy hair coiffing, he sped out the door. Not before waving goodbye to Nathalie, of course, her confused expression unbeknownst to Adrien.

His confidence bubbling up, he strode down the sidewalks of Paris, greeted by a beautiful day full of birdsongs and a bright, smiling sun. Despite not sleeping much, he felt ready to conquer the day, and find the perfect date.

That confidence plummeted to the ground the second he inhaled the bittersweet aroma of the Dupain-Cheng bakery while on his way. His grin became a frown before his foot could take another step, and he froze.

"The bakery..." he reminisced, thinking about how stupid he had been. Unable to see that the girl he should've been going after was right in front of him the whole time, waiting patiently for him as he kept fucking up. Shaking his head, then turning it away from the bakery, he continued. _Nino's right, I should just move on. After all, she has too._

After roughly thirty minutes of walking, he realized that he wasn't going to get anywhere by stumbling around Paris, hoping to bump into a kind soul who would accompany him. If he was going to get a date for the night, it would have to be someone that he knew. Someone who would understand what's at stake, and who would be willing to help him out. Someone who was kind and helpful, and always knew the right things to say.

_Luka._

His stride turned into a sprint as he eyed around for the familiar houseboat. When he spotted his target, lounging on the deck, he halted his sprinting, a huge grin spreading across his face.

"LUKA!" he shouted, waving his hands in the air as he got closer and closer to the boat. He had grabbed Luka's attention, as the taller boy was now making his way to Adrien. He was visibly tired, his eyes half lidded and his legs barely holding him up. He seemed to have just come out of his room, ready to wake himself up by admiring the picture-perfect day and strumming his guitar to the sound of the wind.

"Adrien, what's up? You look really frazzled," he smiled softly, blinking a few times in an attempt to look like he hadn't just woken up. The cool air brushed against his messy bedhead just the right way, and Adrien couldn't help but allow a light blush to creep onto his features. He really was magnificent. Even when he was supposed to look absolutely non-presentable and like a train wreck, he looked like a god, blessing the Earth by allowing the people to view his excellence.

"Oh, uh... well, I kind of need your help, can you do me a huge favor?" Adrien felt his voice cracking, his nervousness consuming him. He sometimes wondered why Luka wasn't the model of the city, he felt completely overwhelmed in his presence. This was exactly the reason why Adrien didn't hang out with Luka more often. Luka was way out of his league, both in the platonic and romantic sense. He couldn't think of anyone better for the job, though. Luka was perfect.

"I'm up for just about anything. Lay it on me," he chuckled, the sound making Adrien's heart skip a beat. He nearly fell over.

"Do you think you could, I dunno... be my date tonight?" Adrien scratched the back of his neck, hurrying to add context, but he was cut off before he could even continue.

"Of course, Adrien. That sounds great, do you need me to pick you up?" Luka said through his smile, which was a lot wider than Adrien had anticipated. His stomach was doing flips. He was in way over his head, and he knew that, but he needed this. Luka cut him off once again, which Adrien mentally thanked him for. "Oh, wait, you've got a limo, I totally forgot. What time should I be ready?"

"If you could be ready around 7, that would be great," he exhaled. As he was just calming down, he rushed in a worried warning, "Don't worry, it's just a temporary thing, I just need to prove to my friends that I can get dates... and now that I'm saying that out loud, I realize how dumb that sounds. If you don't wanna do this, I-"

"Adrien, it's fine. I want to, don't worry about that. Let's just focus on proving your friends wrong," Luka reassured, patting Adrien on the back while shooting him an understanding look. He turned, removing his hand from Adrien's back.

"See you tonight," he beamed, and then he disappeared inside the houseboat. Adrien felt himself turning into a puddle the instant that Luka was out of sight. A smug kwami flew out from inside the boy's shirt.

"You were a _mess_, Adrien!" he cackled, earning himself a pissed-off glare from his owner.

"Yeah, yeah. Laugh it up, Plagg, let's go home so I can get ready properly."

. . .

With nearly 8 hours to spare, Adrien was dreading the evening. He thought that he'd be able to contain himself better, and stay calm. He definitely thought wrong.

"No... definitely not... no way," Adrien muttered as he tossed rejected shirt candidates onto his bed. Each shirt was more over-the-top than the last, and he wondered why his father thought he would like any of these. Asking his dad for clothing ideas for a casual date like this was definitely a mistake. He shook his head as he turned back to look at all of the shirts he decided against. "Maybe I should just go to the store really quick and pick up something new. Something... normal."

"You don't have any 'normal' clothes in your wardrobe?" Plagg questioned, although he should've known the answer. He lived with a fashion designer's son, and a fashion designer wouldn't allow his son to wear anything that a middle-to-lower class person would wear. The only exception was Adrien's normal school attire, which was admittedly very casual, but just a bit too casual for a date.

After a quick trip to a nearby clothing shop, Adrien settled on a light blue button-up shirt with large, white leaves decorating every spot, black jeans, and a blue pair of converse with black laces. Blue reminded him of Luka, for obvious reasons, so he figured he'd dress accordingly. As he exited the shop in his new attire, Plagg looked around for people passing by, and once the coast was clear, he greeted Adrien by sitting on his shoulder.

"I gotta hand it to ya, kid, you look great," Plagg grinned, patting Adrien on the back with a tiny hand. "But don't get used to the compliments."

Adrien grinned at his successful outfit planning. He mentally congratulated himself, then turned on his heel to head home and prepare himself further for the nerve-wracking evening he was about to endure.

As soon as he arrived home, he was questioned by Nathalie, who hadn't gotten a chance to ask him what was up before he left. As his mother figure, she felt a strong obligation to get involved with his life more than she was supposed to, and luckily for her, Gabriel didn't mind at all. He was grateful that Adrien had someone like Nathalie during these hard times.

"Adrien? Is everything okay? You were in such a rush this morning," she questioned. Adrien's face twisted. He didn't really want to tell Nathalie about his ridiculous escapades. Her face screamed curiosity, though, and Adrien offered her the answers to her questions, as to not worry her.

"Yeah! Everything's fine, Nathalie, don't worry. I was just going out to... see someone."

"Was it a girl?" Adrien could've sworn he saw a hint of a smirk on Nathalie's face, and he immediately went up in flames. His cheeks emanated such a warmth that Nathalie could most likely feel it from where she was standing.

"No! It wasn't a girl. It was actually, well, Luka," Adrien stated softly. Nathalie knew that he was into more than just girls, but he still had a hard time talking about those kinds of things with her. It always made his stomach sink, and Nathalie could sense that much. She never pressed him for details, and tried to do whatever she could to show that she was supporting him, no matter what.

"Oh? I see, I hope you guys had a good morning," she smiled, her tone so sweet that Adrien felt like he was getting cavities. He went to hug her, shocking Nathalie to her core for just a few moments. She returned the hug, feeling grateful that Adrien was comfortable enough around her to be affectionate like this. She genuinely saw Adrien as her own child, which she'd never tell Gabriel. She didn't want to disrespect Emilie in any way, but she couldn't help how she felt. She often wished she could do more for Adrien, and act more as a mother than she already did. It was only at certain times that she could, since she had to keep a bit of distance. Being a mother and being an assistant were two extremely different things. She knew she couldn't overstep her boundaries too much.

Adrien finally released her after about a minute of hugging, and waved goodbye as he ran up the stairs, slamming his door closed accidentally. He yelled out an apology to Nathalie, and she giggled to herself.

. . .

"He better not turn up late today," Alya snickered, tapping her fingers on the cloth-draped table. Nino tried his hardest to dress appropriately, but he never wore anything more formal than a t-shirt and jeans. He always had his headphones with him, as well, which he decided against bringing on this occasion.

"Do you think this is gonna work, Alya? He's hopeless," Nino shook his head, smiling slightly. "Pressure isn't gonna help him, is it?"

"It'll work, trust me. You know he's not gonna let himself get embarrassed. He'll show up with someone," she stated confidently.

"Ever since the Marinette thing, he's been more-" Nino cut himself off, and his eyes lit up when he saw a familiar blonde slowly walking into the restaurant.

"Alya, look, he's early!" he nearly shouted. Alya gave him a soft slap on the hand, shushing him. She turned to look at Adrien, who was looking extremely clammy. She eyed his outfit, complimenting it in her head. However, she couldn't help but think that it reminded her of someone. She smiled in his direction, which he didn't happen to see. He was too busy at the front desk, telling the woman who worked there that he had an unpleasant reservation. After a few moments of laughing with the deskwoman, Adrien spotted his two best friends, who were both shooting him smirks. Once he arrived at the table, both prodded him with the same question.

"So, who's your date?" the two of them asked enthusiastically. Adrien rolled his eyes, letting a slight smile tug at the corners of his mouth. He had to admit, as silly as this was, he was a bit grateful that he had an excuse to go on a date with Luka.

"He'll be coming in, just give him a moment," Adrien stated smugly. He was certain that his two so-called friends questioned if he would actually show up with someone or not, and he was glad to be able to shoot their skepticism down. His suspicions were then proven correct. The two gasped, both a bit too ecstatic.

"Hey Nino, Alya, how are you guys?" A voice called out to them, one they both recognized. Light and angelic. Adrien's eyes were glued to the floor, heart fluttering as he saw Luka's figure step into view behind him.

Adrien was praying that his hands weren't too sweaty, because before he could process anything else, he felt the warmth of Luka's hand combining with his own. He lifted his head up and turned it slowly towards his date, whose smile was so bright that it could rival the sun. A small squeak escaped Alya's lips, alerting Adrien that she had noticed. Nino spoke up for the two of them.

"We're good, thanks for asking dude! I'm glad you're joining us," Nino stated gladly, holding one hand out, and using his other to tip his cap. With the hand that wasn't already holding Adrien's, he shook Nino's hand and waved another 'hello' to Alya, who was still frozen in a state of fangirling.

She'd been supporting the idea of Adrien getting with Luka for a while. She was always eager to let Adrien know how good they'd be for each other, but Adrien always insisted that they were just friends, and changed topics as quickly as he could. She suspected that he was simply being oblivious as he always was, and yet something told her that he knew, and was trying to convince himself that he didn't feel anything. Whenever he brought up Luka, he never failed to mention how much cooler Luka was than him, accidentally rambling just enough to give Alya hints that Adrien felt something more than friendly admiration towards Luka.

Alya never overstepped her boundaries, however. If she noticed that Adrien was getting uncomfortable, she stopped. She would never push Adrien to be with someone if he truly didn't want to, and that was final. But seeing him in front of her, holding Luka's hand, she couldn't help but see an 'I told you so' moment in Adrien's near future.

Luka pulled Adrien's chair out for him, holding his hand as the blonde sat down. Once Luka was sure Adrien was comfortable and settled in, he stepped back and sat down in his own seat. The entire table was quiet for multiple moments, the sounds of the rest of the restaurant-goers enveloping the group.

Adrien's eyes darted back and forth between his best friends, who were exchanging their own knowing glances, and his date. His handsome, perfect, kind, smart, amazing, outstanding date. He couldn't help but wonder how Luka was feeling in that moment. Was he embarrassed? Was he upset? Was he hoping and praying that he would get to go home early? Adrien couldn't read his expression, and that filled him with even more anxiety.

He once again felt Luka's hand intertwining itself with his own, and his nerves seemed to dissipate. Somehow, Luka was able to simultaneously cause Adrien to panic intensely, but feel like he was cozy and safe, like he was home.

"So, how did this," Alya waved a hand between the two boys, "happen?" Her smile was impossible to ignore, and contagious, it seemed. Nino's own goofy grin grew as he nodded.

"Yeah, I wanna know the story too. How'd you actually score a date in mere hours, Agreste?" Adrien's scowl, accompanied with the shaking of his head, didn't go unnoticed. Nino snickered silently.

"Is it okay if I'm the one to tell them, Adrien?" Luka asked politely, and Adrien knew that Luka had already thought up an answer beforehand. That part completely slipped Adrien's mind, so he mentally thanked Luka for saving his ass, and nodded. With a slight smile upon his face, Luka spoke.

And god, his voice was always as beautiful as a love song.

Adrien started to think that, just maybe, he had fallen. Fast.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked the first chap! Not sure how long this will be, but I'm excited for everyone to see the rest! c:


End file.
